Do Right By Him
by ILoveVampireDiaries
Summary: The aftermath of Stefan finding out the truth: For trust to be given, it needed to be earned. Stefan finally thought he could trust his brother. It seems he was wrong, just like every other time. Will Damon's excuse be able to prevent him from turning into the Ripper? It wouldn't be just for a few days, Stefan's emotions were deeper than that. This would be forever. Mini-story!
1. Truth

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Except the storyline.**_  
_

_Stefan's reaction to finding out about what happened between Damon and Elena scared me :/ Which is whyyy I'm writing this mini-story! :D  
__And the good thing is I have until the next episode in a couple or so weeks to keep you happy, before we see what **really **happens between the two brothers! :o_

_Enjoy!_

**Chapter One (Stefan's POV):**

"We have family we can trust." Stefan meant it.

Despite everything, he knew Damon would be true to his word. He always was. If he didn't like something, he would say.

And he sure as hell didn't want to let Elena go, but he knew he must.

His honour shone through even when he denied he had any.

Caroline frowned uneasily and repeated "Yeah, you're right, Stefan. Trust...is _everything_."

Stefan shot her a quick glance. She didn't _look _like trusting family was a good thing...

"Have you heard from Damon?"

"Yeah, he's still with Jeremy at the lakehouse."

"Did he happen to mention" She gave a little shrug "where Elena was?"

Stefan tilted his head and walked slowly towards her. "Why are you - why are you asking me this?"

Caroline remained silent, but stared at him with knowledge in her eyes.

Stefan could feel the tension building. Something was happening, and he didn't know about it. He _needed _to know about it.

He thought back over their conversation, and something clicked.

"They're together, aren't they?" Stefan asked.

Caroline shook her head slightly, but her eyes told a different story.

"How together are they?" He put a little force in his tone. "Caroline...tell me. How. Together. Are they?"

She looked down, as if mustering the strength to tell him, then she whispered "They...slept together two nights ago."

Shock, mind numbing absolute shock swept through him.

It wasn't true. It couldn't be true!

They had..._that__ night_...As soon as he had broken up with her!

Wait, no, it wasn't her fault! It was _Damon's _fault! He made her do it!

A shout of anger erupted from his mouth and before he knew it, the chess pieces he had been idly flicking had gone flying, along with the board.

Not being enough to satisfy his sudden thirst for violence, he sped to the lamp and snapped it with his hands, chucking it at the chandelier.

Darkness rained down with the crystal glass, sprinkled on the floor.

"Stefan!" Caroline shouted his name and tried to wrench him away from any more damageable objects. "Stefan, calm down!"

"Caroline..." Stefan turned his face away and felt the anger influence his face to transform into vampiric mode.

"Stefan, let's talk through this..."

"Caroline, I'm done talking. Leave. Please."

"Stefan - "

Stefan twisted round to face her and shout "Get _out!_"

She took a step back but clenched her hands into fists by her side, determined to stick by her friend.

Unfortunately, Stefan was in no mood to have friends around him when all he could think of was his traitor brother.

"I won't leave - "

Stefan seemed to shimmer, picking up a shard of glass and holding it to her neck before she could finish her sentence. "_Please _leave _now_."

"You won't do anything, Stefan." She whispered.

Stefan laughed. A cruel, mocking laugh.

"You don't seem to know the real vampire me as well as you think. The normal Stefan who's your friend? He's a _human _inside. A pathetic, compassionate human."

"I'm a vampire Stefan, and we're just like each other. We aren't dark, or evil like _other _vampires. We're _good_..."

"Your jealousy."

"What?"

"Your jealousy is vicious. You should see how you react around Tyler when he's with a pretty girl, even when they're the width of the room apart. It's ugly. You did this with Matt too, remember? Hey, isn't that the reason you broke up? Not a good sign, Caroline. You're just going to be a jealous ex again, seeing how close Tyler and Hayley are together."

Caroline slammed her hand into his jaw, making him lose his grip on the glass, then she kicked his leg, forcing him down onto his knees.

"You'll snap out of this. Then you'll see what an idiot you're being!"

Suddenly she was gone.

Stefan chuckled and stood up.

She'd left him. As had Elena. As had Damon all those years ago.

There was no one left, nothing to stay for.

He trod through the living room (leaving it a mess) and up the stairs to his room.

It was time to leave.

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Please review :)


	2. Legacy

_Thanks for your reviews/favourites/follows :D Sorry the update is late, I'm on holiday in Cyprus :p Merry late christmas! :D_

_**Jess: **Thanks for your review :) Writing a nearly Ripper Stefan is way different to how I normally write him. I hope I characterize him right :p  
_

_**victoria**: Thank you for your review :D_

_Enjoy!_

**Chapter 2 (DAMON'S POV):**

Damon could think of a million places he would rather be than sat across from Jeremy Gilbert, with a stake pointed at him.

"Come on, you can do it. Just think of happy thoughts – like Bonnie's lurve."

Jeremy let his head fall in his hands. "It's not that easy."

"Why not? It worked with Elena."

Elena's brother raised his head from his fingers and said in a venomous tone. "She's not a big, bad vampire."

"Ooh I'm so scared." Damon really wasn't. This boy was how old? 16? Against a centuries-old vampire? No chance.

Even if he _was _a hunter.

"You should be."

Before Damon could grace that remark with a smart response, they heard frantic banging on the door.

Heads snapping up, Damon got up and told Jeremy to wait there.

Opening the door, he was met with the sight of an energetic Caroline.

"Blondie." He flashed a strained grin. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

He did _not _expect her to rush at him, fangs out and snarling.

He told himself that had she been invited in, he would have been totally prepared to throw her off.

"Caroline?!" Damon's head snapped round to a wide-eyed Jeremy, standing behind him, clutching the stake in a too tight grip to possibly be comfortable.

Damon raised his hands to both of them and said in a calm voice not fitting the scene. "Okay, no one wants this unknown situation to blow out of proportion, so Blondie," he faced a still snarling Caroline "snap out of it, and little Gilbert" he turned to the stake-wielding Jeremy "uh…go to your room."

"Go to my room?!"

"Well, unless you want to tell your sister you killed 1 possibly 2 of her greatest friends because you haven't fully learned to control your hunter instincts yet…I suggest you leave, now."

Jeremy still stood there, undecided. Damon added in a bright voice "Or, I can break your wrists so you aren't tempted to stake us."

Jeremy blinked down at his fists, seeming to only just realise what was in his grip.

Forcing his hand open, he let the piece of wood fall, then, with one last long look at the vampires, went up the stairs.

"Close call, Blondie." Damon turned back to glare at Elena's most irritating friend. Was it just coincidence that _Klaus, _of all people, fell for her?

"This had better be serious."

She glared equally back at him. "Oh, it is."

* * *

**(CAROLINE'S POV):**

"Stefan knows you two are still together."

As Caroline expected, he was annoyed more than anything else.

"Why did you tell him? I've let her go! Now he's going to get all upset and retreat into himself, as he always does. I'll talk to him, he'll understand…" He stopped talking as he studied her expression.

She tried to hide it, but she couldn't help it. Her nature was to tell people the truth!

"What aren't you telling me?"

_Oh no. _His expression stayed blank, but he stepped over the threshold, while she simultaneously took a step back.

"Oh…well… I don't think that's going to work this time…"

He continued to stare silently back at her, giving no response. She decided to go on the offensive.

"You can't expect me to be able to lie to everyone I hold close, so he wanted to let me know how important it is to trust family, and I'm sorry, but you're his _brother _and all you do is lie to him, about letting her go, having sex with her, probably knowing about the sire bond and – "

His expression turned deadly. "What?"

"'What'? Seriously? 'What'? You expect me to repeat that?"

"_What else _did you tell him about me and Elena?"

He eyes looked like they were barely fighting back violence.

"That…that you and Elena were still together and" Oh…and _that_ "and…that you guys slept together – Elena told me! She – she told me…"

"How did he take it?" He face was so pale…Did he actually care about his brother's feelings?

"Not well…Umm… he – he really wasn't well. I haven't seen him this bad since…since – "

"Since the Ripper. Or close to it."

Caroline was _not _prepared for Damon's reaction. Upset, maybe. Put-out, maybe. Angry, yes. But _fear_? No…

"He was still emotional, right?"

Caroline nodded.

"Okay, okay. That's good. Sort of." He rubbed his eyes, and she had never seen him look so _young_ before.

He continued speaking. "Tell everyone to stay away from the Salvatore house tonight, I don't want anyone making things worse. You'll have to keep Jeremy company for tonight as well. I'll deal with this."

"No offence, but I don't think _you _can make it better…"

"I'm his brother."

"Huh, should have thought of that earlier. Two nights earlier."

His look turned venomous. "Keep your nose _out _of our business. I would kill you, but I have more important things to worry about than _you_."

Then he was gone, Caroline just being able to pick him out further down the road in the darkness.

"Save him" She whispered. She got a determined reply back.

"That _is _the Salvatore legacy."

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Please review :)


	3. Emotion

_Thanks again to all who've favourited/followed this, keeps me happy! :) I will try and get most of this story done before the next episode._

**_Chelsie__ and victoria: _**_Thanks for your reviews :D_

_**Guest: **I don't think Stefan deserves it either :(  
_

_Enjoy!_

**Chapter Three (STEFAN'S POV):**

Stuffing only his essential belongings in a single suitcase, he noticed his latest journal lying askew among the neat row of books he kept by his bed. It was obvious it had been read.

One side of his mouth lifting up in a mockery of a smile, Stefan picked it up.

If Damon wanted to snoop through his personal belongings, he was more than welcome. But there should be something decent written in there among his sentimental crap, something to leave behind as a statement of his thoughts right at this moment.

That's what a journal was for, right?

Sitting down on his bed, he began to write.

* * *

**(DAMON'S POV):**

He didn't know what he should expect when he got home.

To find it a mess?

To find it burned down?

To find his brother…gone?

Damon tried to shut off his emotions and focus on the task ahead.

He needed to find Stefan emotional. Only with emotion would Stefan be prevented from turning it 'off'.

Only with emotion would Damon still have his brother.

Damon himself was furious. Caroline had no right to blab!

If – _if _– Stefan was to know about that night, Damon pictured it done under different circumstances.

He could have diffused the situation by telling Stefan that all his wants, his needs, had succumbed under her touch, that Elena had wanted it as much as he did, and he had had _no _idea about the sire-bond.

His mind took a different track for a second. To have that hybrid-type thing happen to him _twice _was just stupid.

Charlotte had been an odd woman anyway, but with _Elena _of all people!

Letting her go after only a couple of days of calling her _his _had been the hardest thing he had ever done, but it seemed things were going to get a bit more complicated.

He would now have to attempt to explain to his brother that they were no longer together, while admitting what they had done. If Stefan would let Damon talk.

When his brother's temper got the better of him, it was a force to be reckoned with.

Damon didn't do mad, he did revenge. But Stefan, who was (usually) so loving, had had a rough couple of months. And it had messed with his brain, turning him inside out and making him plain shady.

But he had been slowly improving, and now that ridiculous Caroline had put ideas into his head.

In the past, in this type of situation Damon would never have admitted to anyone that he wanted Stefan back to life-loving, brooding, able-to-see-the-best-in-people little brother, but now he didn't care who found out.

The world was turning upside down; Elena now chose Damon instead of Stefan, most people now trusted Damon more than Stefan - it was madness!

Reaching the house, Damon slowed down and approached the front door cautiously.

Surprise really was the key to this reconnaissance.

Surprise, and emotion.

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Please review :)


	4. Betrayal

_Here's the next chapter :) I'm glad you're all enjoying this story! Thank you for all your compliments, they mean a lot to me._**  
**

_**victoria: **Thank you! I'm glad you think so :) I try to make my chapters satisfying, sorry if they're not the length you like, I'll try harder! :)  
_

**Chapter Four (Stefan's POV):**

Head snapping up at the sound of the door, Stefan realised he had been so immersed in pouring his emotions into his journal, time had passed quicker than he thought.

Emotions now simmering under the surface rather than boiling, Stefan's skills as a vampire were more acute.

They were always this way when he became the Ripper.

Deadly and efficient. Once he controlled himself, that would be it.

No more nice-guy Stefan Salvatore.

Placing the journal carefully closed on his bed, he sauntered out of his room and stood at the top of the stairs, waiting for his brother (for who else could it be?) to notice him.

In a few seconds, Damon entered his line of vision and saw him immediately.

"Stefan."

Stefan inclined his head "_Damon_."

It seemed that past these pleasantries, his brother was at a loss for anything to say.

Stefan definitely wasn't going to help. He was done _helping _anyone but himself.

Finally Damon spoke up "Caroline came to me."

Stefan nodded, appraising the situation. If Caroline had gone to his brother, who she made no secret of hating, then she must see himself as toppling over the edge, and needing help.

So she brought _Damon_, the person he really didn't want to see.

His calm manner belied the tension coursing through his veins.

Damn, just the presence of his brother was undoing all his work.

Emotion was bad, emotion meant he couldn't become the Ripper, emotion meant he still _cared_. Which he didn't.

* * *

**(Damon's POV):**

Emotion was good. It meant Stefan still cared.

And despite the calm pretence, Damon could see his brother's taut muscles, primed for action.

He laughed inwardly that his brother thought he could fool _him_.

Maybe Caroline, maybe even Elena, but not him.

Damon needed more emotion coming from his brother, a sure way that the Ripper was not imminent.

There was only one way for that, and he made a note to himself that he was not sorry for what he had to do in advance, to save his brother.

"I guess you know I slept with Elena?"

Stefan's head jerked to the side.

"I take that as a 'yes'. I bet what you don't know is that I had no lead in it. _She _wanted me, wanted to be inside of me more than anything!" Stefan's mouth had dropped open, comical at any other moment. "I guess you could say it was the sire-bond, but I could feel her. She wanted _me_, she _wants_ me, and nothing you or I do will change that, not even me letting her go." He let out a short laugh. "She rushed to me as soon as you broke up with – "

A roar gave him warning before Stefan launched himself from the banisters.

A fist connected with Damon's head before he rolled out of the attack and stood crouching, a smile playing on his lips, hair straying into his eyes. "What? I was just telling the truth."

Stefan was all fangs and crimson eyes, pure anger lending him strength, the agony in his eyes fresh. "You _never _tell the truth!" he cried.

He rushed at Damon again, who in turn braced himself and flung his brother back, wincing at the weight. Stefan really wasn't keeping back.

"You don't know the whole story." He calmly quipped back.

"I know enough!" He raced at Damon yet again, who was pushed to the side, while it seemed that Stefan was trying to rip his throat out.

This was good – aside from the fact that Damon really wanted to keep his throat – it was good that Stefan was young, despite all the years he existed on earth.

When it came to love, Stefan was _definitely _young. This did him no favours in wanting to become the Ripper.

"Listen to me, Stefan. Listen to me!"

Stefan backed away.

Damon shot up and brushed his clothes down. As he was looking down, he realised the floor was glittering.

What _was _that?

Reaching down, he felt the sharp splinters the mini shards gave him.

Glass.

Glancing up, his eyes narrowed. "Hey, that chandelier was expensive! _And _special, from the 1950's!"

Stefan raised his eyebrows. "Oh boo hoo."

Focused on the missing chandelier, the elder Salvatore didn't notice the swinging broken lamp stand until it was too late.

With a sharp pain to his gut, he was out fast.

* * *

Please review :)


	5. Ripper, Spark

_Here are 2 chapters merged into one! I thought I'd be kind and give you all what you want :) Hope you like it! Thank you for all your reviews!  
_

_**Guest: **Well here it is :)  
_

_**victoria: **Hope you like what happens next :D  
_

_Enjoy!  
_

**Chapter Five Part 1 ****Ripper** (Damon's POV):

Waking up on the floor, he groaned. Feeling his chest, he was surprised to see it was still intact.

His brother had attacked him with a lamp stand! Seriously, was he done with wrecking the place?

Damon was all for leaving his brother right now and never looking back, something which Stefan obviously wanted him to do. Wanted everyone who loved him to do.

Well, Damon never was one for following his brother's wishes.

Jumping up, he swayed a little, before gaining his bearings and rushing up the stairs to Stefan's room.

"Stefan! Stefan, where are you?" One look at his brother's room told him everything he needed to know.

Stefan was gone.

Had Damon pushed too far? Should he have attempted to calm him before telling him the truth?

Had he essentially sent his brother escaping into the arms of the Ripper?

He seemed to make one bad choice after another when it came to his brother.

Sitting heavily on the bed, his hand brushed past a book.

Picking it up, he realised it was Stefan's journal.

Why would he leave it here? Unless…unless he no longer cared who read it. Almost as if he was inviting everyone to take a look at his sorry life.

Obliging, Damon flicked through it to the recent entry.

_"The time has come._

_I knew everyone would betray me in the end. Elena…She lied to me. She told me it would forever be me. Me and her, always. The love I felt was real, was never-ending. Hers was – must have been – fake. To betray me by being in love with my brother? I realise now that she was never in love with me. She loved me, in that twisted mind of hers, but not in the same way. When she became a vampire, she was finally able to look through the haze of emotions and there was the bright shining light of my brother._

_My traitor brother. Always there to bring me down from my fantasies of happiness._

_If you're reading this Damon, know that I hate you. I save your life countless times, showing my love despite your horrors, and this is what I get? Well my 'love' was just a lie. I hate you. I wonder what it'll be like hating someone for a century, because he stole your love?_

_I would stay for tips, but I have a feeling mine will last longer than that. It's too late. The time has come._

_Goodbye my constant book companion logging my happiness, my fears, my thoughts, I fear that I won't have need for you where I'm heading."_

Damon dropped Stefan's journal back down on the bed. He wondered if his brother really did hate him for good this time.

No matter, Stefan was not giving in so easily. He would want one more reminder as to what he was leaving behind.

Damon needed to get to Elena's house. Fast.

**(Stefan's POV):**

He stood outside her house, gazing up at her window, as he had done many times before in the more happier times of this year.

Something inside of him broke, as if he wasn't hurting enough already.

He couldn't take this pain anymore. He had existed for 164 years, and all he got was heartbreak and betrayal everywhere he turned. It was all a lie. Everyone's love was a lie.

All he'd wanted was to have his brother and his girl by his side. United against evil.

Stefan laughed without humour. The evil they were facing was among them.

The funny thing was, he didn't think it was Damon. It was himself.

Who was he kidding? He'd written all that crap about his traitor brother in the journal because of his overriding present emotions, but now, now he knew he was the weak link in all this.

No one loved him. Everyone seemed to love Damon now. Wasn't that a sign?

He had outlived his usefulness here in Mystic Falls, he had brought danger to all the inhabitants; Elena, Bonnie, Caroline, Jeremy, Matt, Alaric, Tyler, Jenna.

The danger he'd brought wasn't his brother. No, it was him all along. Stefan Stupid Salvatore.

The tears flowed down his cheeks freely, a signal to him that he should go.

He had gotten what he deserved.

Turning he stopped abruptly to avoid running into the last person he wanted to see.

"Leaving so soon?"

"I need to go. I'm the Ripper now. There's nothing you can do for me."

His brother didn't move an inch. "Funny, but I don't think the Ripper would cry somehow, do you?"

**Chapter Five Part 2 Spark (Damon's POV):**

Damon shoved Stefan into Elena's house before he could bolt.

He knew that bringing Elena into this was a bad idea, especially as she was supposed to be forgetting about him, but there was nowhere he could take Stefan quick enough for him not to be able to escape.

"Stefan? _Damon?_" Elena appeared in the living room staring at an agitated Stefan and an outwardly calm Damon.

Inside he was just as agitated as his brother was. He was just better at hiding it.

"Sorry Elena, there was nowhere else to go on time. Do you mind if we just…sort something out here? You can do whatever girls do right now…"

"Damon I don't understand, I'm not supposed to be seeing you…"

"And you won't, not if you go out that door and… meet up with Bonnie."

"Bonnie?"

As if absent-mindedly she began to move towards the front door, Damon holding it open for her like a perfect gentleman.

"Yes with Bonnie, you can have a perfect girly chat." He added almost as an afterthought "Just don't invite Caroline!"

She was at the door and turned around "Why not?"

"Because she's been a very bad girl. Bye!"

As soon as she stepped over the doorway, Damon firmly closed the door and locked it, turning to face Stefan, who was being surprisingly silent.

His brother was standing still, arms folded with an amused expression on his face, all tears dried away. "I see you're enjoying the power you have over her."

"I'm not _enjoying _it Stefan, don't be ridiculous. I'm using this chance for _you_."

"Oh, sorry, I should be grateful for the sire-bond, should I?"

Damon rubbed his eyes, feeling like a parent. He reminded himself never to adopt. Kids – _teenagers _– were a nightmare. That's all his brother really was, a teenager for eternity.

"Brother, listen to me - "

"I'm not your brother."

"Jeez, what are you on about?"

Stefan stepped closer. "We are not _brothers_. _Brothers _don't take each other's girl. The term '_brothers' _suggests familiarity. _Brothers _are there for you. Klaus is more of a brother than you."

Damon winced, trying to remind himself that Stefan wasn't stable right now, so of course he'd think Klaus was brotherly. He wanted to side with evil, be evil, justify himself. Intriguing, he didn't think Damon was evil. "I am here for you."

Stefan hmphed and began to turn away.

"I've always been here for you! All those times I followed you wherever you went, I was clearing up after you - the times you were the Ripper - or just plain looking out for you, when you were normal. Well, as normal as _you_."

Stefan turned back and smiled dazedly.

With a feeling of dread, Damon searched his brother's eyes. They were dead. No feeling left in them, no spark.

_No…NO!_

Damon raced forward and struck Stefan's head tightly, then grabbed his chin in one hand, bringing it close to his.

His eyes were dead.

"Stefan…Stefan! You are _not _leaving me!"

His brother's eyes were dead.

"Don't do this. Don't punish me like this. Lexi isn't here to bring you back from the edge this time. And…And I'm not good enough to try."

Why were they so lifeless?

"I'm sorry I lied to you. I told you I'd let Elena go, but I hadn't. I'm sorry. It was _so _hard, and I hate myself for showing weakness. But I _did_ do it. I did right by you. I really tried, brother."

He tasted salt and was shocked at showing this sign of weakness. Maybe it would influence his brother back to reality?

No, Stefan's eyes were still…off.

Damon looked away and rubbed his eyes with his free hand in frustration. "God damn it Stefan, what will it take for you to be my little brother again?!"

He shut his eyes, feeling a sense of hopelessness wash over him.

A feeling that washed away as easily as it had come when he heard his brother's voice, trembling and strained "Maybe if you let go of me, I'd be able to tell you."

Almost cracking his neck turning round so fast, Damon's own eyes lit up when he saw the light in those emotion-filled eyes. Anger, pain, confusion.

Damon slowly let go of his brother, worried that he'd knock him out again, and be gone for good.

When Stefan blinked and shook his head, as if emerging from a dream, Damon laughed.

He still had power over his brother, the power of brotherly love. The Ripper had nothing on him.

"Well hello Stefan again. Shall we go back home? Talk over a cup of coffee or…blood?"

Stefan cut in "Hey, I still haven't forgiven you."

Damon grinned crookedly at his very non-Rippery brother. "Whatever you say, little brother."

* * *

Please review. A couple more chapters left in this I think :)


	6. Forgiveness

_Here's the penultimate chapter! :) Again thank you for your wonderful reviews! I wonder how the situation will really run out in the episode..._

_**victoria: **Thanks for your review, I'm glad you liked my longer than usual update ;)  
_

_Enjoy!_

**Chapter Seven (STEFAN'S POV):**

Stefan almost felt ashamed that his determined stance had crumbled so easily.

Trudging back into the Salvatore house, he kept his head bent.

He'd caused trouble, yet again.

Walking into the house he immediately remembered and regretted the mess he'd left in the living room.

As they entered the room, Damon turned back with an eyebrow raised. "I guess this is where Caroline told you? The room of destruction."

Stefan nodded cautiously, ducking his head. "Sorry about, you know…"

"Oh don't worry about it. We can always get another chandelier."

"No - I meant sorry about hitting you with the lamp stand…"

Damon rolled his eyes affectionately. "I know."

Exhausted, Stefan slumped onto the sofa.

Damon came and sat next to him, something Stefan wasn't expecting. They'd always sat on opposite sofas, _always_. And now Damon was sitting next to him. For some reason it felt significant. There was no tension anymore, Damon truly knew the extent of his feelings, which was a heck of a lot.

"Hey, I know this question is going to sound stupid, but I want to know every detail of what's on your mind, so... what's wrong?"

Stefan let his head drop in his hands with a sigh. "My life."

"Oka-ay, let me rephrase that. What's first in the list?"

He muttered through his fingers. "It'll take forever."

"We have all night and morning before I'm expected back at the lake house."

Stefan closed his hands into fists. "Ugh, now I've taken you from Jeremy - someone _I _created to kill us – and training him to try and not kill his sister, and – and - my life is a _failure!"_

Damon grabbed Stefan and hugged him.

Hugged him until his trembling stopped.

Hugged him until he reached his arms round…and hugged his brother back.

* * *

They stayed like that for a while, Stefan comforted by his brother's firm presence, who never seemed to waver at every obstacle, but bulldozed through them, while Stefan fell flat on his face. And then he realised what his first problem was.

"I have no willpower."

Damon leant back, releasing Stefan, who sat back on the edge of his side of the sofa.

"Why do you think that?"

"Well you saw me this evening! I couldn't even keep my resolve to be the Ripper for more than a few hours – and I was totally fuelled for it."

Damon shook his head and chuckled lightly.

"Ah Stefan, it's always half empty for you, isn't it?"

He was _not _going to put up with any condescension this time. "Damon - "

"Let me finish, brother. I can still call you 'brother', right? We're still brothers?"

"What?" He caught Damon's amused glance, then remembered "Oh yeah, _of course_."

"Are you sure? Because Klaus is free to take my place if he wants - "

"Oh shut up." Stefan smiled despite himself.

Once Damon was finished grinning, trying hard to keep his laughter in, he continued "It's just, you see yourself not becoming the Ripper because of a loss of willpower, but I see it is because of the _strength_ of your will."

Stefan frowned. "How do you work that one out?"

"Your emotions are your control, Stefan. Me, I can shut them off because I don't do feelings very well. I'm always hiding behind a mask. And that is why you will always be stronger than me in mind. You're strong enough to show what you feel every time. Which is why no one trusts you at the moment, because you're trying to hide your feelings, and that's so unlike you."

Stefan nodded slowly then stopped abruptly. "No one trusts me?"

Damon glanced at him warily "Come on, Stefan, the way you've been acting recently, it's plain shady. Even beloved Caroline is scared of you."

Stefan breathed in deeply, then slumped back into the sofa. "She was just doing the right thing. I snapped. All the pressure of being okay for Elena to break up with me, okay for you two to get together..." He shot a look at his brother "I'm sorry for sounding like such an idiot, especially as I _know _you love her as much as I do. I'm sorry that you had to let her go. It's okay that you lied to me earlier, you just needed time. I see that now."

"One downside to your tremendous willpower is that you feel every damn thing. But I guess that's what makes you more human than the rest of us." Damon stretched and made a move to get up.

"Hey, where are you going…?" Stefan reached a hand out to his brother then pulled back at the last minute.

Damon grinned crookedly and stayed seated. "I thought we were finished…?"

Stefan returned the grin, albeit shyly. "That was only the first problem."

* * *

Please review :)


	7. Brothers

_So here's the last chapter - I hope you've all liked this mini-story!_

_Thank you to everyone who's made it happen - that means YOU (reviewers/favouriters/followers)!_

_See ya next time when I start another story or oneshot in the future sometime :) Depends what juice the producers give us :p  
_

_**victoria: **They seriously do! The only time we've seen them hug is in the flashback in season 1. I hate their feuding D:  
_

_**guest: **I'm glad you think strongly about that subject! Yes, of course in reality Stefan should not forgive his brother so easily, but a) this is only a mini-story and b) I really want them to just be friends (as well as brothers) again! It kills me that there's always the issue of their girlfriends that stops them from getting along! I prefer Stefan, so I think Damon should get a girlfriend of his own - not Elena ;) I liked Rose :(  
_

_Enjoy!  
_

**Chapter Eight (Caroline's POV):**

When Damon didn't return in the morning, Caroline was at her wits end.

Elena had phoned last night, recounting the events of Damon and Stefan appearing in her house, looking as if they'd been fighting, and that Damon had told her to meet Bonnie.

Caroline had instantly offered to meet up as well, but Elena had told her to stay with Jeremy, that it was best they didn't bother Damon or Stefan, and she wanted a girly chat with Bonnie.

Caroline had put the phone down in frustration, just knowing that Damon had used his freaky power to stop her friend from talking to her. And he probably hadn't confessed to Elena that Stefan knew about them...you know.

Now, Caroline only had Jeremy for company, which wasn't helping her nerves.

"Aren't we supposed to be training…?"

Caroline realised that she hadn't talked to Jeremy for a while.

"Oh, erm…Look Jeremy, there's something _big _happening, and I'm stuck here, no offence, when instead I should be helping my friend! Training is the last thing on my mind!"

Jeremy took a step back, and opened his mouth as if to say 'sorry', then his posture changed, eyes hardening. "Your friend who's a vampire?"

Caroline continued to search outside the house for any sign of either Salvatore, barely listening to Jeremy. "Uh yeah" She turned round and flicked him an absent smile, before resuming her search.

"Your type really is everywhere, aren't they?"

"Mhmm…"

"Infecting the whole of Mystic Falls."

"Yep." Caroline nodded absently, then stopped. "Err what?"

Feeling a sharp object at her back, she swivelled slowly round.

"Vampires shouldn't _be _here, Caroline."

"Okay, I'll leave…"

Jeremy laughed dryly. "I don't mean this house, I mean this _town!"_

Caroline furtively glanced down at the stake that was clenched in Jeremy's grip. "Listen Jeremy, I know you think you should do this because of your hunter's instincts or whatever, but remember that your sister is 'one of them'! All your close friends are either vampires, werewolves, hybrids, witches, every supernatural being possible in the planet!"

"Then I need to wash the planet of them all. Starting with you."

Before Caroline could react, Jeremy was pulling back and plunging forward…

..."Jeremy!" A shout from outside the window...

...Suddenly his flow was diverted by a body flung between them.

"I don't think so, Jeremy."

Caroline's eyes widened at both voices, able to recognise them from anywhere.

"I need to kill you all!" Jeremy hissed.

Damon tossed the stake up and down idly. "Yeah, not today. We need to train you to kill the _real _monsters. Isn't that right, brother?"

"We don't kill people until necessary, brother. Unless it's you, of course." The voice held no evil in it, just a playful tone.

Damon grinned without saying anything, pushing Jeremy towards the door.

Caroline spun to the window, where Stefan was standing, leaning against the window frame, a smile lifting the corners of his mouth, a complete contrast to when she'd last seen him. It seemed his whole presence was shining, or maybe it was the sun?

"Stefan…" She whispered. She wanted to apologize for the pain she'd caused him, it wasn't her place to tell him the secrets that had been insubstantial in the wide view of things.

Stefan leant forward as close as he could before the invisible barrier stopped him. "_I'm _sorry for how I reacted, Caroline. You've been the best friend I could ever have, and I hate that I acted that way around you. I promise I'm going to stay as close as I can to the Stefan you know."

Damon appeared next to Caroline at the window. "The Stefan you _are_."

They both shared a look that Caroline couldn't believe she was seeing. It was a far cry from the animosity usually present.

Indicating for Stefan to go round to the door, Caroline followed Damon.

"Okay little Gilbert, invite Stefan in."

"What? I'm not going to invite _another _vampire here!"

"My brother and I are going to help you to become a vampire-loving hunter. It's what you want - the _real _you wants. You know it is."

Jeremy's tense muscles flexed. His eyes softened a little as he became himself again.

He sighed "Sorry about that, the urge to kill the enemy is too strong sometimes. Uh Stefan, come in." Glancing at all of them in turn, he shook his head and headed towards the kitchen.

"Right well, Blondie goodbye," Damon cheerfully announced "we'll see you…sometime in the future."

"But I – you – we…"

Stefan surprised her by hugging her tight. "Everything is fine, Caroline. Trust us."

"I trust _you._"

Damon sauntered towards them as they pulled out of the hug and Stefan glanced at him, repeating "Trust _us_."

"I just saved your life, Blondie. Put a little faith in me."

Caroline glanced at the elder Salvatore warily before turning back to Stefan. He was smiling again.

The change in him was clear. No more lies lay hidden beneath his exterior, what she could see on the outside shone through from the inside. It was as if his soul lay plain for everyone to see.

His love. His joy. His trust. His fear. His pain.

This was the real Stefan.

"I'm glad you're back, Stefan."

* * *

**(Damon's POV):  
**

Damon was glad when Caroline left the house, taking away any tension with her.

No matter how matey she and Stefan were, he would never warm to her.

This mishap had been all her fault in the first place.

Well, technically it hadn't, but Damon wasn't one to admit to that.

Turning to his brother, he grinned. "What do you say to fixing another troublesome little brother?"

Stefan raised an eyebrow, serious looking - apart from the sparkle in his eyes "It's the older ones that are always the problem."

Damon opened his mouth in mock horror and put his hands on his hips. "How dare you say such a thing!"

Stefan couldn't contain his laughter. "Wow, paranoid much, did I mention _you_? But now we're talking about it, you need to control yourself, sometimes. People would think you were being a _pest_ on purpose."

Damon stalked forward. "What, like now, _boy_?"

Stefan backed away, realisation forming in his eyes, hands in front of him. "Uhh Damon, you know I'm sensitive..."

Damon grinned mischievously "Yeah, I know."

Ever since he had been a small child, there was one thing Stefan couldn't stand. Tickling.

His little brother had always been the more sensitive one, in mind and touch.

Stefan's grin had dropped. "Damon...don't - " Damon leaped "- _DAMON!_"

"I'm a pest, remember?"

Damon managed to trap Stefan in a headlock and had proceeded to tickle at his leisure when a voice cut through the laughter.

"Have you guys stopped mucking around? We do have work to do."

Both Salvatore brothers turned to look at Jeremy, laughter echoing into silence.

"Right, sir, sorry sir." Damon released his brother and straightened up, brushing down his clothes.

Jeremy rolled his eyes and muttered something like "Vampires" before saying "I'll be ready in the living room" and leaving.

Stefan tried to smooth down his ruffled hair while simultaneously glaring at his brother.

Damon smiled angelically. "Saved by the hunter. That's a first."

Stefan started to walk to the living room and said over his shoulder ominously. "There's a first for everything. Like getting back at you."

Damon frowned, but the show of anxiety was betrayed by the amusement in his eyes. "Is that a threat, brother?"

Stefan twisted round before backing in the room. "You'd better watch your back, _brother_." Then he was gone.

"_You'd better watch your back_" Damon mimicked his brother's voice childishly, then sighed.

His brother couldn't do anything to faze him. Could he?

He shook the momentary doubt off, which was replaced by an unusually warm glow.

The novelty that Stefan had remained Ripper-less for _him_ hadn't worn off.

They would always be brothers. No matter what.

* * *

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